In the reciprocating internal combustion engine, and other intermittent combustions engines, improved emissions and fuel mileage are areas of constant focus. One area where improvements can be made includes liquid fuel vaporization, particularly with respect to fuels such as gasoline and diesel fuels. For such fuels to be effective, the fuel should be converted from a liquid to a vapor, no matter how small a liquid fuel droplet is in size.
In order for a reciprocating engine to generate power, the fuel used must at least partially explode rather than burn slowly (as the engine combustion cycle is typically too short for a slowly burning liquid fuel to burn completely before the exhaust cycle begins). This is particularly a problem with the diesel engine, as the fuel is injected into the combustion chamber in liquid spray form, vaporized, and self-ignited in the same combustion cycle. Even under normal operating conditions, diesel fuel tends to self-ignite before being vaporized completely. Further, at cold start, the vaporization is even less complete, exacerbating problems associated with poor emissions. For example, soot can build up due to incomplete combustion of the fuel. Additionally, increased harmful exhaust results when the fuel is not completely consumed in the fuel combustion process.
Many of these problems can be solved and improved emissions can be effectuated if the fuel is essentially completely vaporized prior to ignition. However, conventional thermal heating of a fuel to a useful degree before injection is not desirable, as overheating of liquid fuel in the fuel line can cause vapor lock. Additionally, marginal heating to avoid vapor lock does not contribute significantly to an improvement in vaporization.